Chelsea miss chance to go top with draw at Everton

Chelsea missed the chance to leapfrog Liverpool at the top of the Premier League as they were held to a 0-0 draw by Everton.

Enzo Maresca’s side knew a win at Goodison Park would put them at least temporarily top, with Liverpool facing Tottenham Hotspur later on Sunday, but the Blues were left frustrated by a strong defensive display from the Toffees.

Nicolas Jackson spurned two big chances in the first half, as he was thwarted by goalkeeper Jordan Pickford and then the woodwork.

Chelsea had nearly 75 per cent possession but Everton, in their first match since being taken over by The Friedkin Group, had the best two opportunities after the break, with Jack Harrison fluffing his lines before Tosin Adarabioyo made a fantastic block to deny Iliman Ndiaye.

The draw leaves Chelsea in second, though Liverpool could now increase their lead at the top to four points heading into Christmas. Everton are now 15th, four points clear of the bottom three.

How the match unfolded

Jackson might feel he should have done better when presented with the clearest chance of the match in the 26th minute, but the striker failed to beat Pickford from point-blank range.

The woodwork came to Everton’s rescue when Jackson met Enzo Fernandez’s corner, with Pickford and Vitalii Mykolenko flying out to deny Malo Gusto on the rebound.

Everton finally threatened towards the end of the half – Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez keeping out a long-range shot from Orel Mangala with an outstretched hand.

Sanchez had to be alert again shortly after the restart, as he spread himself to close down Harrison’s shot from inside the area.

And despite their dominance of the ball, Chelsea were ultimately indebted to Adarabioyo when the defender lunged in to block Ndiaye’s close-range effort in the 78th minute, as the Blues saw a five-match winning streak in the league come to an end.

Chelsea’s charge held up

Maresca has consistently played down his team’s chances of battling for the title, but a win on Sunday would have put them ahead of Liverpool, albeit having played a fixture more by the time the weekend is up.

It would have been the first time Chelsea topped the table since December 2021, when Thomas Tuchel was in charge.

After a frenzied start, they controlled most of the first half but still struggled to create too many openings, with the likes of Pedro Neto and Cole Palmer not allowed much space in between the lines, albeit the latter did still craft that first opening for Jackson with a square ball across the box.

This frustration would continue in the second half, as clear-cut chances continued to be few and far between against a well-drilled Everton defence, who were buoyed by restricting Chelsea’s London rivals Arsenal to a goalless draw last week.

Jackson has had a fine season, but despite scoring against Brentford last time out, he was wasteful in that win at Stamford Bridge, and he will surely come away from this one thinking he should have had at least one goal.

If they are to challenge for the title, then these are the types of tests Chelsea will have to come through with all three points. Next up for them is a west London derby against Fulham on Boxing Day.

New era begins with a Dyche special

There had been plenty of optimism going into this match for Everton, following the finalising of The Friedkin Group’s takeover of the club.

This pre-match positivity was followed by a gritty display, with Sean Dyche deciding to stick with the exact same side that managed a credible draw away to Arsenal last weekend.

Everton were forced to soak up plenty of early pressure, with Pickford standing firm when required, first to keep out Neto’s effort before making a far more impressive stop to deny Jackson breaking the deadlock.

James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite turned in a fine performance ahead of Pickford, helping the Toffees to a seventh league clean sheet of the campaign.

Had Harrison shown a bit more composure when he found himself one-on-one with Sanchez, or Adarabioyo not timed his tackle on Ndiaye perfectly, Everton may well have helped themselves to an early Christmas treat.

As it is, they will now head to out-of-form Manchester City on the back of holding two of the Premier League’s best teams to goalless draws.

Match reports

Everton report | Chelsea report

What the managers said

Sean Dyche: “A deserved point. I think it was a fair result for both teams. Both had half-chances and were going at it in different ways to try and win.”

Enzo Maresca: “That was a real game. I am very happy because the performance of the boys was fantastic. Sometimes you have to play a different game and we are learning to play a different game. They are one of the best teams in Europe in terms of clean sheets.”

Next PL fixtures

Key facts

Everton put an end to Chelsea’s 15-match scoring run in the Premier League today, with the Blues failing to score for the first time in the league since a 0-2 defeat to Manchester City on the opening day of the season.

Chelsea had 74.6 per cent possession against Everton today, their highest average in a Premier League match this season and their most in the competition since February (77.3 per cent v Crystal Palace).

Chelsea have hit the woodwork 12 times in the Premier League this season, with no team doing so more often than the Blues in the competition; meanwhile only Erling Haaland (four) has struck the woodwork more times than Nicolas Jackson this season (three).

(epl)